1

Compare the information included in the article from the magazine "Centuries speak" entitled “Feast of the War. European Societies in the Presence of the Outbreak of the First World War” with the information from the textbook regarding the outbreak of the First World War. Which of the following sources provide more information about:
- Political causes of the war;
- The goals that were supposed to be achieved with the war by its participants;
- The economic situation in Europe at the time of the war outbreak;
- Reaction of European societies to the outbreak of the conflict.

Methodological remarks: the task can be carried out individually or in groups of two.

Solution to the task: The textbook provides more information on: the political reasons for the outbreak of the war; the goals that individual participants wanted to achieve through the war; and the economic situation in Europe at the time the war begun. Comparing to the textbook, the article contains more information on reaction of the European societies to the outbreak of the conflict.

a. Discuss the following problem as a class/group: Is an article in a popular magazine able to complement or substitute knowledge from textbooks and specialist history books?

Methodological remarks: task may take the form of a group/class discussion moderated by the teacher. Students can also address the stated problem individually by mentioning their own arguments to justify their answer to the question.

Solution to the task: textbooks usually provide a broad and comprehensive approach to the subject. Popular articles focus on some sections of knowledge. They expand and explain in detail a particular aspect of the problem. Therefore, it is beneficial to use materials of popular nature as an extension of information included in school and specialist books. On the other hand, textbooks and books should be used to verify information obtained from popular sources, which sometimes contain errors and simplifications.

2

Try to determine the origins of the illustrations included in the article. Based on the information from the article, is it possible to answer the following questions:
- From what historical period does a given illustration come?
- Who is the author of a given illustration?
- What kind of illustration we are dealing with (picture, photo, poster, postcard, etc.)?

Methodological remarks: the task can be carried out individually or in groups of two.

Solution to the task:

- Yes, the article provides information such as: a drawing from the period (p. 32); beer advertisement (...) from the second half of 1914 (p. 33); approximate date (end of July 1914) when the photograph on page 34 was taken; a painting from the period (p. 35); a poster from the beginning of the war (p. 35); approximate date (first days of August 1914) when the photograph on page 36 was taken.

- No, this information is not provided.

- Yes, a drawing from the period is shown on page 32; on page 33 there is an advertising poster; the illustrations on pages 34 and 36 are photographs from the period; on page 35, one can find a painting from the period and a poster.

a. What are the important elements that make an illustration/drawing/photograph/painting a reliable source of knowledge?

Solution to the task:
A reliable source of information are the figures that are contemporary to the events to which they relate (photographs, paintings from the period, posters, etc.) Therefore, the date of creation (even approximated) of an illustration plays an important role. It is also important to determine the author of an illustration in order to examine they objective or subjective attitude toward the events which the image/poster/photo corresponds to. The fact whether the author was a direct witness to the events shown in the illustration or used the information obtained indirectly is also an important issue. It is essential to determine the origin of the illustration – for example, the title of the newspaper in which it was originally published or the person that ordered it. It allows you to find out the purpose for which the illustration was created: for instance purpose of propaganda, marketing, press information, documentation.

3

Identify the elements present or repeated on different figures that confirm the connection between joining the war and such values as patriotism, heroism, sacrifice, and glory.

Methodological remarks: the task can be carried out individually or in groups of two.
Solution to the task: the illustrations show the following elements commonly associated with patriotism, heroism, sacrifice, and glory:

- National flags;
- Mass demonstrations;
- Ceremonial parade army uniforms (decorated with medals);
- Flowers handed over to soldiers by young girls;
- Farewell ceremonies for the soldiers that go to the battlefront.

a. What do the similarities in the illustrations from a variety of countries joining the war included in the article mean?

Methodological remarks: this part of the task may take a form of a discussion in front of the group/class.

Solution to the task: The similarities of the illustrations from various countries indicate that the reaction to the outbreak of the war was alike among the societies.
In individual countries joining the war, enthusiasm of citizens manifested itself in a similar way: by public demonstrations of unity and patriotism (underlined with flags and national symbols); mass farewell ceremonies for soldiers leaving for the battlefront; demonstration of respect and gratitude to the soldiers’ uniforms which symbolize heroism and sacrifice for their country.

4

Working in a small group, focus on the Hungarian beer advertisement shown in one of the article’s illustrations (p. 33).

Methodological remarks: the task may be carried out in small groups. Each of the groups should present and discuss the results in front of the class.

Solution to the task: the illustration depicts a scene on the battlefront. In the foreground next to a giant cannon, one can find Austro-Hungarian and German soldiers standing. They are laughing, relaxed and drinking beer from large mugs. They are leaning against a beer barrel. Bottles of alcoholic drink are placed around them. In the background, running towards them, there are the Triple Entente soldiers (in French, English, Scottish and Indian uniforms). They have their hands raised in a gesture of giving in. One can see a waving white flag, which is also a symbol of surrender.

b. How was the subject of the war outbreak and general optimism of the society about joining the conflict used for marketing purposes?

Solution to the task: the battlefront is shown in the advertisement as a place of fun, where the soldiers apart from the struggle, indulge in pleasures such as drinking beer. At the same time, the strength and power of the Austro-Hungarian and German armies is symbolized, apart from the huge guns and aircraft, also by excellent beer. It gives the soldiers encouragement. It is so tasty that it even leads the enemies to surrender only to be able to taste the drink. So, the soldiers equipped with the beer are almost invincible. This kind of scene corresponds to a popular imagination of majority of the population about the war as a thrilling adventure. Civilians who wanted to imitate the heroic soldiers can buy the same beer which makes the front-line heroes invincible.

c. Discuss in front of the group/class, if the subject of war can be found in modern advertising and marketing campaigns. What are possible reasons?

Solution to the task: Today, motives related to war are not used in advertising campaigns. After the experiences of the twentieth century wars, in a society aware of the effects of armed conflict, advertisements related to the subject of war would have very bad connotations. It would be considered distasteful or even offensive. In 1914, the society that was unaware of the misery and destruction caused by global conflicts, may consider the advertisement referring to the subject of war funny and compelling.

d. Discuss in front of the group/class the following issue: Can advertising materials be a reliable source of historical information? Justify your answer.

Solution to the task: In general, advertising materials may not be treated as completely reliable source of information, because their purpose is to induce consumers to specific actions (purchase goods, choose a brand, etc.) However, in certain cases, this kind of historical materials (posters or leaflets from a specific period in the past) can be a good source of information about the everyday lives of people in a given period. They say a lot about the habits, tastes, ways of spending time, common views and public moods of societies of the time. Therefore discussing the beer advertisement can be a source of knowledge about the Austro-Hungarian society's attitude to the military events in the second half of 1914.

5

Which elements of the article suggest that it is a reliable source of information? What other elements that are not included in this article can prove the reliability and credibility of a source of historical information?

Methodological remarks: the task can be carried out individually or in groups of two. The conclusions should be discussed in front of the class/group.
Solution to the task:
Elements that demonstrate the reliability of the article "Feast of the War" as a source of historical information:

- The article comes from a popular magazine devoted only to historical subjects; the magazine has been known in the market for many years and it has recommendation of history teachers;

- It is possible to determine the author of the material and his qualifications; the author is a professional historian which is stated in the short note at the end of the article;

- The article is enriched with illustrations that originate from the considered period; dates or approximated period of creation are specified;

- The article includes quotations from historical sources from the period (diaries, journals) with names of the authors given in the article – for instance: notes by Wojciech Kossak, Maria Lubomirska, Victor Adler, Tomasz Mann, Bertrand Russell.

Other elements that may indicative that a source of information is reliable:

- references to the sources (books, articles, archives) that were used by the author in the text;

- bibliography (list of literature related to the topic);

- detailed descriptions of the material (illustrations, audio recordings) used in the publication (including author’s name, material origin, date of creation, current location).